Game device, golf game device shot result decision method

ABSTRACT

A game apparatus is provided that can reduce the number of times that a player of the game has to performs unnecessary manual operations. A shot direction and a golf club determined by automatic determination means  53  can be modified by manual modification means  55.  Shot position determination means  51  determines whether or not a shot motion should be made at the same position continuously twice. When the shot position determination means  51  determines that the shot motion was the second shot made at the same position, the automatic determination means  53  determines the shot direction and club, which has been stored in memory means  57  at the time of a previous play, as a shot direction and a club for a next play.

TECHNICAL FIELD

The present invention relates to a game apparatus that automaticallydetermines and manually modifies settings for carrying on the game, andmore specifically to a golf game apparatus that automatically determinesa shot direction and a club to use, a method of determining a shotresult for the game apparatus, and a program for implementing the methodin a computer.

BACKGROUND ART

Some of publicly known game apparatuses are constructed to carry on thegame by moving a movable object, such as a ball which is displayed on ascreen, based on an input from an input device operated by a gameplayer. Typical examples of such game apparatus include a golf gameapparatus, a fishing game apparatus, and a baseball game apparatus. Thiskind of game apparatus determines, based on the input from the inputdevice, whether or not the arrival point that the movable object such asa ball has reached is in a target area or is out of the target area.Automatic determination means automatically determines settings forcarrying on the game at least including a moving direction of themovable object before the input has been made. It is possible tomanually modify the automatically determined settings for carrying onthe game. Japanese Patent Publication No. 2001-190836 discloses atypical example of a golf game apparatus of this kind. FIG. 6 of thepublication shows an example flowchart of a program to be used with thegolf game apparatus, in which selection of a club and determination of ashot direction are made during a process of shots. Further, acommercially available golf game apparatus for TV games automaticallydetermines the shot direction toward a hole and the golf club to be usedfor each shot, and displays the determined shot direction and theselected club on a screen. In this apparatus, it is also possible tomanually modify the shot direction and the golf club to be used.

DISCLOSURE OF THE INVENTION Problems to Be Solved by the Invention

For example, the conventional golf game apparatus, which is a typicalexample of the game apparatus of this kind, is adapted to automaticallydetermine the shot direction (the moving direction of the movableobject) toward the hole and the golf club to be used, based onpredetermined settings, and also to manually modify them for each shot,even though a shot has resulted in an out-of-bounds (OB) in which theball has gone out of a course, or a water hazard (WH) in which the ballhas fallen into a pond or the sea. However, when the game player isinexperienced or very young, such player often has to repeatedly hit theball at the same shot position since the player cannot readily carry theball onto a right course. Even in such a situation, with theconventional apparatus, the game player, who wants to modify theautomatic settings, has to manually modify the settings for each shot.With an apparatus for a virtual or simulation golf game in which theplayer actually swings an imitated golf club, a body of the gameapparatus, in which manually-operated switches are disposed, is placedat the foot of the player, and the player has to bend over to operatethe switches for each time. The more the player has to manually operatethe switches, the more the player gets tired.

Therefore, an object of the present invention is to provide a gameapparatus and a golf game apparatus capable of reducing the number oftimes that the player has to perform unnecessary manual operations.

Another object of the present invention is to provide a game apparatusand a golf game apparatus capable of alleviating a physical burden onthe game player.

Still another object of the present invention is to provide a golf gameapparatus which can reduce the number of times that the player has toperform a manual operation in order that the player gets out of suchsituation as an out-of-bounds (OB) and water hazard.

A further object of the present invention is to provide a shot resultdetermination method for the golf game apparatus that can reduce thenumber of times the player has to perform a manual operation in thecourse of determining shot results, and a program for implementing themethod.

Means of Solving the Problems

With a game apparatus of the present invention, a game is carried on bymoving a movable object displayed on a screen based on an input from aninput device operated by the game player. Accordingly, the gameapparatus of the present invention comprises determination means,automatic determination means, manual modification means, and memorymeans. The determination means determines, based on the input from theinput device, whether or not an arrival point that the movable objecthas reached is in a target area or is out of the target area. Here, inthe golf game, the “target area” means an area where a hole is locatedor an interim target area on the course before arriving at the holeposition (a place where an OB or water hazard is not caused). The“out-of-the-target area” means an area out of the target, where an OBand water hazard is typically caused. The automatic determination meansautomatically determines settings for carrying on the game at leastincluding a moving direction of the movable object before the input hasbeen made. The manual modification means allows the settings forcarrying on the game automatically determined by the automaticdetermination means to be modified manually. The memory means storessettings for carrying on the game. Especially in the present invention,the automatic determination means determines the settings for carryingon the game for a previous play which have been stored in the memorymeans should be used as the settings for carrying on the game for a nextplay when the determination means determines that the arrival pointdetermined for the previous play is out of the target area and that forthe next play the movable object has to be moved from the same point asthat for the previous play.

According to the present invention, when the game player wants to makean input via the input device with the same settings for carrying on thegame as those for the previous play in order to move again the movableobject from the same position as that for the previous play, or when theplayer wants to change the settings for the previous play just a littlebit, the automatic determination means determines the settings forcarrying on the game for the previous play as those for the next play.Accordingly, the number of times that the player has to perform a manualoperation can be reduced. Thus, the burden imposed on the game player,who otherwise manually modifies the settings for carrying on the game,can be alleviated.

Especially, when the input device includes a game tool to be operated bythe game player in a three dimensional space, and a body of the gameapparatus, which includes therein at least the manual modificationmeans, is disposed at the foot of the game player, and if the body ofthe game apparatus includes one or more switches to be operated by thegame player to manually modify the settings for carrying on the game,the game player has to bend over each time the settings are manuallymodified. The present invention significantly eases the burden of thegame player in such a case.

More specifically, the game apparatus of the present invention includesa game tool to be operated by the player in a three dimensional space, abody of the game apparatus that includes one or more switches forsettings and that is provided separately from the game tool, and acontrol unit that is disposed inside the body of the game apparatus andincludes image display means for controlling how the movable object isdisplayed on the screen. The game is carried on stage by stage, namely,one stage of the game is executed with each operation of the game tool.In this case, the control unit comprises motion signal generation means,the automatic determination means, the manual modification means, thememory means, and the determination means. The motion signal generationmeans detects a motion of the game tool and outputs a motion signal inaccordance with the detected motion. The automatic determination meansautomatically determines, for each stage, the settings for carrying onthe game, at least including a moving direction of the movable objectmoving on the screen according to the motion signal. The manualmodification means allows the settings for carrying on the gameautomatically determined by the automatic determination means to bemodified manually. The memory means stores the settings for carrying onthe game at the time that the motion signal is outputted. Thedetermination means determines, at least based on the motion signal andsettings for carrying on the game, whether the arrival point that themovable object has reached is in the target area or is out of the targetarea. In this case, the automatic determination means determines thesettings for carrying on the game for a previous play which have beenstored in the memory means should be used as the settings for carryingon the game for a next play when the determination means determines thatthe arrival point determined for the previous play is out of the targetarea and that for the next play the movable object has to be moved fromthe same point as that for the previous play.

The present invention is effective in setting a direction of a shot in agolf game apparatus, a direction of casting of a fly into an area wherea large number of fish are supposed to be in a fishing game apparatus, adirection of an initial stroke (which satisfies the requirement that theball should pass through the initial gate without fail) in agate-ball-simulated game apparatus, and a direction of a serve in atennis game apparatus.

Especially when the present invention is applied to a golf gameapparatus, the golf game apparatus comprises an input device, automaticdetermination means, manual modification means, motion signal generationmeans, shot result determination means and image display means. Theinput device is operated by the game player in order to input a shotmotion of a golf club. This input device may be a controller for gameswhich has an ordinary screen to be operated by pressing a plurality ofswitches, or it may be a controller for games which does not have ascreen. Further, it may be a combination of a game tool which imitates agolf club and a device inside the body of the game apparatus.

The automatic determination means determines an optimal club for eachshot (which is one of the settings for carrying on the game for onestage) in accordance with a shot direction toward a hole and a distanceto the hole for each shot. The determination of the shot direction andthe optimal club as describe above is one of the settings for carryingon the game for the game. The shot direction towards the hole basicallyrepresents the shortest distance from the shot position to the hole.What have been determined may be usually or temporarily displayed on thescreen. Or the screen image may be turned in the shot direction so thatthe player can recognize the shot direction toward the hole. Or a playercharacter may be indicated on the screen so that the player canrecognize the shot direction toward the hole, judging from the way theplayer character faces. Further, what kind of a club has been selectedmay be indicated on the screen with a character or a picture. Or, it maybe indicated by changing an image of the club that the player holds sothat the player can recognize the selected club. Further, it may beannounced by voice.

The manual modification means allows the shot direction and the clubdetermined by the automatic determination means to be modified manually.The switches arranged on the input device and so on can be used as amanual control portion for manual operation. When the input device isconstituted by the combination of the golf club for games (game tool)and the body of the game apparatus, what is necessary is just to disposethe manual control portion on the golf club for games, and/or the bodyof the game apparatus.

The motion signal generation means outputs the motion signal inaccordance with the shot motion of the golf club inputted with the inputdevice. The motion signal includes information on timing, velocityand/or acceleration of the shot motion. When the golf club for games(game tool) operated by the player in the three dimensional space isused as the input device, the motion signal further includes informationon any one of the shot motions such as a swing direction and an angle.

The shot result determination means determines an arrival point that aball has reached and a shot result based on the motion signal(information on the shot that is included in this signal). The shotresult determination means determines the arrival point that the ballhas reached and the shot result (hole-in, green-on, course-on,course-out such as OB or water hazard, etc.) in view of the courseconditions and predetermined settings (such as a direction of winds). Inshort, the shot result determination means constitutes theabove-mentioned determination means of the present invention, namely,determines whether the arrival point that the ball has reached is in thetarget area (hole-in, green-on, course-on) or is out of the target area(course-out such as OB and water hazard etc.).

The image display means has various kinds of functions for displaying ona screen how the game is being carried on. For example, the imagedisplay means has a function of displaying on the screen an image of thegolf course, the shot direction and the club determined by the automaticdetermination means or the manual modification means, and a scene inwhich the ball is moving to the arrival point that has been determinedby the shot result determination means and so on.

The golf game apparatus of the present invention further comprisesmemory means for storing the shot direction and the club at the timethat the previous shot motion was made, and shot position determinationmeans for determining whether or not the shot motion should be made atthe same position. The memory means may store at least the shotdirection and club that were determined before the shot motion was madefor the previous play. The shot position determination means determineswhether or not a next shot position should be made at the same positionas that for the previous play based on the result determined by the shotresult determination means. For example, if the determined result isthat an OB has been caused, a next shot motion is made at the sameposition as that for the previous play. If the determined result is thata water hazard has been caused twice continuously, the shot positionafter the second water hazard has been caused is determined as the sameposition as that for the previous play.

In the game apparatus of the present invention, the automaticdetermination means has a function of determining that the shotdirection and the club for a previous play that have been stored in thememory means should be used for a next play when the shot positiondetermination means determines that a next shot motion should be made atthe same position as that for the previous play. Accordingly, theautomatic determination means, with such function as described above,allows the shot direction and/or the club, for which settings weremanually modified to avoid an OB or water hazard etc. at the time thatthe shot motion was made for the previous play, to be used again for ashot motion for the next play when it is determined that a subsequentshot motion should be made at the same position as that of the previousplay due to the OB or water hazard, etc. Therefore, when the game playerwants to make a shot motion again in the same situation as previousplay, or wants to modify the settings for the previous play just alittle bit, the number of times that the player has to perform themanual operation can be reduced. In a conventional manner, a shotdirection toward the hole and a club are automatically determined foreach shot motion, and manual operation is always required in order torestore the settings thereof to those for the previous play.Consequently, it leads to increased operational burden on the gameplayer. Especially if a golf club for games is used and one or moreswitches for manual operation (manual modification means) are disposedat the foot of the game player, the player has to bend over each time tomanually modify the settings, suffering more physical burden. Thepresent invention can ease such burden.

A shot result determination method for the golf game apparatusautomatically determines an optimal club in accordance with a shotdirection toward a hole and a distance to the hole at first, while itallows the automatically determined shot direction and the club to bemodified manually, and finally determines a shot result for each shotbased on the shot motion inputted from the input device, the shotdirection and the club which have been determined automatically ormanually. In this case, the method of the present invention stores theshot direction and the club at the time the previous shot motion wasmade, and automatically determines the shot direction and the clubstored at the time of the previous play as a shot direction and a clubfor a next play when a subsequent shot motion should be made at the sameposition as that for the previous play.

Alternatively, a program for a golf game apparatus, which determines ashot result, causes a computer to execute: a function of automaticallydetermining an optimal club in accordance with a shot direction toward ahole and a distance to the hole; a function of allowing theautomatically determined shot direction and the club to be modifiedmanually; and a function of determining a shot result for each shotbased on a shot motion inputted from the input device and the shotdirection and the club determined automatically or manually. Especially,the program of the present invention further causes the computer toexecute a function of storing the shot direction and the club at thetime that the previous shot motion was made, and a function ofdetermining automatically the shot direction and the club stored at thetime of the previous play as a shot direction and a club for a next playwhen a subsequent shot motion should be made at the same position asthat for the previous play. It is needless to say that this program maybe recorded on a recording medium.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 illustrates how a golf game apparatus for a virtual or simulationgame is used according to an embodiment of the present invention asapplied to such a virtual or simulation game apparatus.

FIG. 2 is a perspective view of a body of the game apparatus used in theembodiment shown in FIG. 1.

FIG. 3 is a cross-sectional view of the body of the game apparatus shownin FIG. 2, in which most of the internal mechanism is omitted from theillustration.

FIG. 4 is a block diagram showing principal components of a circuitinstalled inside the body of the game apparatus according to thisembodiment.

FIG. 5 is a block diagram showing function-implementing means havingvarious kinds of functions to be implemented inside a processor forgames, and illustrates the relationship of a light-emitting element, alight-receiving element and a game tool.

FIG. 6 is a flowchart of an example algorithm used in implementing in acomputer each of the function-implementing means of the golf gameapparatus according to the present embodiment.

FIG. 7 illustrates an example of a screen.

FIG. 8 illustrates another example of a screen.

FIG. 9 illustrates a further example of a screen.

FIG. 10 illustrates a further example of a screen.

FIG. 11 illustrates a further example of a screen.

FIG. 12 illustrates a further example of a screen.

FIG. 13 illustrates a further example of a screen.

FIG. 14A and FIG. 14B are explanatory illustrations showing how theprocessing according to the present invention is different from theconventional one.

BEST MODE FOR IMPLEMENTING THE INVENTION

Now an embodiment of the present invention will be described in detailwith reference to the drawings. In this embodiment, the presentinvention is applied to a golf game apparatus. FIG. 1 illustrates how agame apparatus for a virtual or simulation game is used in an embodimentof the present invention as applied to a game apparatus for a virtual orsimulation game. In this figure, a body 1 of the game apparatus havingswitches, omitted from the illustration, is connected directly to atelevision set 5 via a cord 3, and a game tool 9 that imitates a golfclub (golf club for games) to be operated (swung) by a player 7 is usedas a part of an input device.

FIG. 2 is a perspective view of the body 1 of the game apparatus used inthis embodiment. FIG. 3 shows a cross-sectional view of the body 1 ofthe game apparatus, in which most of the internal mechanism is notillustrated. The body 1 of the game apparatus includes a casing 15 whichis formed by combining an upper half-portion 11 and a lower half-portion13. The half-portions, upper and lower, have been formed by verticallysplitting the casing 15 into two portions, upper and lower. A circuit isdisposed inside the casing 15, including a microcomputer as itsprincipal component. Four pushbutton switches 17 to 23 (that is, 17, 19,21 and 23) are arranged on the surface of the upper half-portion 11 sothat the switches can be pressed down. In addition, a sliding-type powerswitch 25 is disposed in an area 12 of the upper half-portion 11 that issurrounded by the four pushbutton switches 17 to 23. These pushbuttonswitches 17 to 23 are operated when making an important selection in thecourse of the game, such as selection of a game type, a golf course, andgolf club type. Ten through-holes 27 to 36, which are paired up two bytwo, are formed in the area 12 of the upper half-portion 11. Namely, thethrough-holes 27 and 28, through-holes 29 and 30, through-holes 31 and32, through-holes 33 and 34, and through-holes 35 and 36 are pairedrespectively. Light-emitting elements 39 are respectively disposedinside the through-holes 27, 29, 31, 33, and 35. Light-receivingelements 41 are respectively disposed inside the through-holes 28, 30,32, 34, and 36. In the present embodiment where the game apparatus isused for a simulated golf game apparatus, only the light-emittingelements 39 and light-receiving elements 41 disposed respectively insidethe through-holes 31, 32 and the through-holes 33, 34 and thethrough-holes 35, 36 are actually used for detecting the operation(operation timing) of the game tool 9. As shown in FIG. 3, thelight-receiving elements 41 are disposed lower than the light-emittingelements 39 (in the vicinity of the lower half-portion 13). In otherwords, the vertical length of each of the through-holes 28, 30, 32, 34,and 36 receiving the light-receiving elements 41 is longer than thevertical length of each of the through-holes 27, 29, 31, 33, and 35receiving the light-emitting elements 39. In view of the light-emittingelement 39, the shorter the distance of the light-emitting element 39and the game tool 9 equipped with a light-reflecting plate is, the morelight will be reflected. In view of the light-receiving element 41, ifthe light-receiving element 41 is located too high (if the locationthereof is of the same height as the light-emitting element 39 or higherthan that), the light-receiving element 41 also receives lights otherthan the light emitted from the light-emitting elements 39 and reflectedby the game tool 9. Consequently, a signal outputted from thelight-receiving elements 41 includes much noise to cause an erroneousdetection. A desirable distance in the vertical direction (up and downdirection) between the light-receiving element 41 and the light-emittingelement 39 is varied depending on various factors such as the height ofa zone which is located above the body 1 of the game apparatus throughwhich the game tool 9 passes, a quantity of light emitted from thelight-emitting element 39, an emission angle range of the light emittedfrom the light-emitting element 39 (angular range where the lightemitted from the light-emitting element 39 intersects the zone), alight-receiving angle range (angular range in which light reflected fromthe game tool 9 through the through-holes 27, 29, 31, 33, and 35 can bereceived) of the light-receiving element 41 disposed on the bottom ofeach of the through-holes 28, 30, 32, 34, and 36, and a reflectance ofthe light reflecting material mounted on the game tool 9.

FIG. 4 is a block diagram showing principal components of a circuitinstalled inside the body 1 of the game apparatus according to thisembodiment. Power circuits of the light-emitting elements 39 etc. areomitted from the illustration. What has been developed exclusively forgame apparatus can be applied as a processor 43 for games having aninternal memory 42 which stores information acquired from a signaloutputted from the light-receiving element 41. An example of suchprocessor 43 for games (including a microcomputer) is shown in U.S. Pat.No. 3,467,382, and is publicly known. However, the processor for gamesavailable for carrying out the present invention is not limited to whatis disclosed in the foregoing patent publication. A program necessaryfor running the processor 43 for games is stored in an external memory45. Circuits for processing a video signal and an audio signal areincluded inside the processor 43 for games. Therefore, an output fromthe processor 43 for games is outputted directly to a television set 5.It is needless to say that a circuit may be constructed without usingsuch processor 43 for games.

FIG. 5 is a block diagram showing function-implementing means havingvarious kinds of functions to be implemented inside the processor 43 forgames, and also illustrates a relationship of the three light-emittingelements 39, the three light-receiving elements 41 and the game tool 9.The three light-emitting elements 39 and the three light-receivingelements 41 are arranged in such a manner that they are respectivelylocated at the triangular vertexes. One of the light-emitting elements39 and one of the light-receiving elements 41 which are adjacent to eachother are paired. The paired light-emitting elements 39 and thelight-receiving elements 41 are arranged so that light emitted from thepaired light-emitting element 39 may be reflected by the game tool 9 andreceived by the paired light-receiving element 41. As with the techniqueused in this embodiment, it is publicly known that light-receivingelements 41 are respectively disposed at three triangular vertexes andare adopted to produce outputs to detect the speed and moving directionof the game tool 9. Therefore, a detailed description is omitted.

The function-implementing means shown in FIG. 5 includes motion signalgeneration means 47, shot result determination means 49, shot positiondetermination means 51, automatic determination means 53, manualmodification means 55, memory means 57, and image display means 59, allof which constitute a control unit.

The motion signal generation means 47 includes the three light-emittingelements 39 that emit out light in a three dimensional space S in whichthe game tool 9 is operated, and the three light-receiving elements 41that receive reflected light which has been emitted from thecorresponding light-emitting elements 39 and reflected by the lightreflecting material mounted on the surface of the game tool 9. When thegame tool 9 passes over the body 1 of the game apparatus, three lightreceiving signals are respectively outputted with time difference fromthe three light-receiving elements 41. (The motion signal generationmeans 47 generates a motion signal including information on the motionof the game tool 9 (information on timing at which the game tool 9 wasswung, operational velocity and moving direction of the game tool) basedon the three light receiving signals. The moving velocity and movingdirection of the game tool 9 can be known by identifying generation timeintervals of the three light receiving signals. The moving directionetc. of the game tool 9 can be known from a light-receiving timedifference of the two light-receiving elements 41 received within twolight-receiving element receiving holes 32 and 34 that are located sideby side in a direction orthogonal to the moving direction of the gametool 9. The operation timing and moving velocity at which the game tool9 is swung can be known by the generation time and generation intervalof the light receiving signals in the two light-receiving elements,which are arranged at some interval in the moving direction of the gametool 9.

The shot result determination means 49 determines an arrival point thatthe ball has reached and a shot result based on the motion signal(information on the shot that is included in the signal). In short, theshot result determination means 49 constitutes the determination meansof the present invention which determines whether the arrival point thatthe ball has reached is in a target area or is out of the target area,at least based on the motion signal and the settings for carrying on thegame (shot direction and selected club). It is needless to say that theshot result determination means 49 may be constructed to determine thearrival point that the ball has reached and the shot result (hole-in,green-on, course-on, course-out such as OB or water hazard, etc.) inview of the course conditions and predetermined settings (such as adirection of winds). Results determined by the shot result determinationmeans 49 is transmitted to the image display means 59, and the imagedisplay means 59 displays an image on the screen of the television set 5in accordance with the determined result.

The shot position determination means 51 determines whether or not anext shot position should be the same as that for the previous playbased on the result determined by the shot result determination means49. For example, if the determined result is that an OB has been caused,a next shot motion is made at the same position as that for the previousplay, and if the determined result is that a water hazard has beenrepeated twice, the shot position after the second water hazard has beencaused should be the same as that for the previous play.

The automatic determination means 53 determines an optimal club inaccordance with a shot direction toward a hole and a distance to thehole. The shot direction towards the hole basically represents theshortest distance from the shot position to the hole. What has beendetermined is displayed on the screen of the television set 5 as will beexplained later. It is arbitrary how to display what have beendetermined. A mark of a flag may be displayed in the shot direction onthe screen. The screen image may be turned toward the shot direction sothat the player can recognize the shot direction toward the hole. Or, aplayer character may be indicated on the screen so that the player canrecognize the shot direction toward the hole, judging from the way theplayer character faces. Further, what kind of a club has been selectedmay be indicated on the screen with a character or a picture. Or, it maybe indicated by changing an image of the club that the player holds sothat the player can recognize the selected club. Further, it may beannounced by voice.

The manual modification means 55 allows the shot direction and the clubdetermined by the automatic determination means 53 to be modifiedmanually. Switches disposed on the input device (switches 17 to 23 shownin FIG. 2) and so on can be used as a manual control portion for manualoperation. As with this embodiment, when the input device is constitutedby a combination of a golf club for games (a game tool) and a body ofthe game apparatus, the manual control portion may be arranged on thegolf club for games, and/or the body of the game apparatus.

The shot direction and the club which were determined by automaticdetermination means 53 and the manual modification means 55 are storedin the memory means 57. The memory means 57 may store at least the shotdirection and the club which were determined before the shot motion wasmade for the previous play.

FIG. 6 is a flowchart showing a program algorithm to be used forexecuting in a computer each of the function implementing means of thepresent embodiment. FIGS. 7 to 13 illustrate screen displays forexplaining what will be done in accordance with the program when thewater hazard is repeated twice. FIG. 7 illustrates a scene in which theball is put on the edge of a pond after the first water hazard has beencaused. As shown in the screen of FIG. 7, a player 63, a background 65,a course view 67, a ball-position information indicator 69 thatindicates what circumstances the ball is placed in, and a clubinformation indicator 71 that indicates a type of the selected club aredisplayed on the screen. In FIG. 7, a shot direction indication mark 73with a picture of a flag is displayed on the screen in order to show theshot direction automatically determined by the automatic determinationmeans 53. The shot direction is also indicated by an arrow 75 in thecourse view 67. The current number of strokes is indicated on anumber-of-strokes indicator 77.

In step ST1 of FIG. 6, an optimal club is determined at first inaccordance with the shot direction toward the hole and the distance tothe hole. The foregoing determination is executed by the automaticdetermination means 53 shown in FIG. 5. Next, it is determined in stepST2 whether or not the automatically determined shot direction is to bemodified. When the shot direction is to be modified, the process goes tostep ST3 where the shot direction is modified with a selected direction.This modification is executed by the manual modification means 55 shownin FIG. 5. FIG. 8 shows a screen which is displayed after the shotdirection has been modified. The background is moved and the arrow 75which indicates the shot direction on the course view 67 is also moved.The shot direction indication mark 73, which shows the automaticallydetermined shot direction, remains on the screen in order to show thelocation of the hole.

When the shot direction is not modified, the process goes to step ST4from step ST2. In step ST4, it is determined whether or not the club isto be changed. When club is to be changed, the process goes to step ST5where the club is changed. Actually, the club is changed by pressing anyone of switches 17 to 23 disposed on the body of the game apparatusshown in FIG. 2. When comparing FIG. 9 with FIG. 8, it is known that theclub-information indicator 71 indicates that the club has been changedfrom iron 3 to iron 7.

When the club is not changed in step ST4, the process goes to step ST6.In step ST6, it is determined whether or not the game player has swungthe game tool (golf club for games) 9. If a swing is detected, thecurrently-determined shot direction and the club in use are stored inthe memory means 57. Next, the number of strokes is counted in step ST8, and the carry and roll distance, namely, the moving distance anddirection of the ball is calculated in step ST9. Then the shot result isdetermined in steps ST10, 14 and 22. FIG. 10 shows a screen displayright after the swing has been detected, in which the number of strokesindicated by the number-of-strokes indicator 77 is increased by one.

When it is determined in step ST22 that the shot resulted in a waterhazard, such a shot image as shown in FIG. 10 is displayed in step ST23,an image of the flying ball as shown in FIG. 11 is displayed in stepST24, and an image of the arrival point of the ball as shown in FIG. 12is displayed in step ST25.

When a water hazard is caused as shown in FIG. 12, it is determined instep ST26 that a next shot should be made at the same ball position asthat for the previous play. The number of strokes is added by one instep ST27 (one count as a penalty due to the water hazard). FIG. 13shows such a situation as described above. The number-of-strokesindicator 77 is increased by one as shown in FIG. 13. Then it isdetermined in step ST28 whether or not a shot of this time should bemade again at the same position as that for the previous play (whetheror not the ball should be put on the same position again). Since FIG. 13shows a situation in which the shot should be made again at the sameposition as that for the previous play, the process goes to step ST29,and the shot direction and the selected club that are displayed on thescreen are identical to those that were determined for the previouslyplay. As is clear by comparing FIG. 9 with FIG. 13, the shot directionand the type of the club that are determined by the automaticdetermination means are identical to those that were determined for theprevious play.

How to determine the shot direction in accordance with theabove-mentioned steps will now be explained using FIG. 14A. First, ifthe initial shot position is on the course as indicated with (1), theshot direction towards the hole is automatically determined in step ST1and then displayed. If the shot is made in the foregoing situation, andthe shot results in a water hazard, the ball position (the shotposition) is moved to a position (2). Even at this time, the shotdirection is initially determined automatically toward the hole in stepST1. Then the shot direction is manually modified to the direction asindicated with a solid line. If the second shot ends up in a waterhazard again, the ball position (the shot position) for a next play ismoved to a position (3). Although the positions (2) and (3) areindicated in the figure as if they were arranged side by side, they infact overlap in the same position on the actual screen of the game. Atthis time, the shot direction is determined to be identical to what wasdetermined for the previous play in the steps ST28 and 29 so that theshot direction for the previous play may be displayed again on thescreen. Although a direction of the dashed line (3) shown in the figureis indicated as if it were in parallel with the solid line (2), it infact overlaps the solid line (2) on the actual screen of the game. FIG.14B illustrates a shot result that is determined by the conventionalmethod of determining the shot direction. Conventionally, even when theshot of the previous play, whose shot direction has been modified, ismade at the position (2) and ends up in a water hazard, the shotdirection for a next play is determined to be in the direction towardthe hole from the position (3). Accordingly, the player has to selectthe shot direction and the club again. When a shot results in an OB, theprocess proceeds in a similar manner as described above.

Returning to FIG. 6, if it is determined that the shot ends up in ahole-in, the process proceeds from step ST10 to steps ST11, ST12, andST13, and then the game is over. If the shot result is determined thatthe ball has landed on the green, the process proceeds from step ST14 tosteps ST15, ST16, and ST17 to display an image, and then goes to stepST18. In step ST 18, the shot direction is automatically determinedtoward the hole, and a putter club is automatically selected. The shotdirection can be modified in steps ST19 and ST20, but the putter clubcannot be changed. When a swing is detected in step ST21, the processgoes to step ST7. When the shot result is determined that the ball haslanded on the course other than those mentioned above, the processproceeds from step ST30 to steps ST31, ST32 and ST33, and returns tostep ST1. Even when a water hazard or OB is caused, if a next shot isthe first stroke to be made at that position, the process proceeds fromstep ST28 to step ST1. If the next shot does not end up in a waterhazard or OB, the process goes through ordinary steps.

In the program algorithm shown in FIG. 6, the automatic determinationmeans is implemented in steps ST1, ST18, and ST29. The manualmodification means is implemented in steps ST2 to ST5, and steps ST19and ST20. The shot result determination means is implemented in stepsST10, ST14, ST22, ST30 and so on. Further, the shot positiondetermination means is implemented in step ST 28. The motion signalgeneration means is partially implemented in steps ST6 and ST21. Thememory means is partially implemented in step ST 7. The image displaymeans is implemented in most of the remaining steps.

As described above, according to the apparatus or the shot resultdetermination method of the present embodiment, the automaticdetermination means 53 has a function of determining the shot directionand the club that have been stored in the memory means 57 at the time ofthe previous play as those for the next play when the shot positiondetermination means 51 determines that a next shot motion should be madeat the same position as that of the previous play, or should be made atthe same position continuously (twice). Accordingly, the shot directionand/or the club, of which the settings were manually modified at thetime that the shot motion was made for the previous play in order toavoid OB or water hazard etc., can be used again for a shot motion forthe next play when it is determined that a shot motion should be maderepeatedly at the same position as that for the previous play due to theOB or water hazard, etc. Therefore, when the game player wants to make ashot motion again in the same situation as previous play, or wants tomodify the settings for the previous situation just a little bit, thenumber of times that the player has to perform the manual operation canbe reduced.

Although the above-mentioned embodiment is applied to a game apparatusfor a virtual or simulation game in which a golf club for games (gametool) is actually swung, the present invention is not limited to this,and may be applied to a golf game apparatus of other types with whichthe player carries on the game by pressing a switch disposed on a gamecontroller and so on.

Further, the present invention is not limited to a golf game as long asit is a game which determines settings for carrying on the game for theprevious play as those for a next play, and may be applied to fishing,gate-ball, billiards, soccer, baseball, tennis and the like.

INDUSTRIAL APPLICABILITY

A game apparatus of the present invention, accordingly, has suchadvantage that the number of times that the player has to perform themanual operation can be reduced when the player wants to input from aninput device again in the same situation as the previous play, or wantsto modify settings just a little bit compared with those for theprevious situation, in order to move a movable object from the sameposition again.

The golf game apparatus of the present invention allows the shotdirection and/or the club, of which the settings were modified manuallyat the time that the shot motion was made for the previous play in orderto avoid an OB or water hazard, to be used again as those for a shotmotion for the next play, if a shot motion has to be made from the sameposition as that for the previous play due to the OB or water hazard,etc. Thus, the number of times that the player has to perform the manualoperation can be reduced when the game player wants to make a shotmotion in the same situation as previous play again, or wants to modifythe settings for the previous situation just a little bit.

Further, the present invention can reduce physical burden on the gameplayer who has to bend over to manually modify the settings using thebody of the game apparatus which is placed at the foot of the player.

1. A game apparatus for playing a game that includes a control unit forcarrying on the game by moving a movable object displayed on a screenbased on an input from an input device operated by a game player, thecontrol unit comprising: determination means for determining, based onthe input, whether an arrival point that the movable object has reachedis in a target area or is out of the target area; automaticdetermination means for automatically determining settings for carryingon the game at least including a moving direction of the movable objectbefore the input has been made; manual modification means for allowingthe settings for carrying on the game automatically determined by theautomatic determination means to be modified manually; and memory meansfor storing the settings for carrying on the game; wherein the automaticdetermination means determines that the settings for carrying on thegame for a previous play which have been stored in the memory meansshould be used as the settings for carrying on the game for a next playwhen the determination means determines that the arrival pointdetermined for the previous play is out of the target area and that forthe next play the movable object has to be moved from the same point asthat for the previous play.
 2. The game apparatus according to claim 1,wherein the input device is a game tool to be operated by the player ina three dimensional space; the control unit is disposed inside a body ofthe game apparatus, the body including one or more switches and beingprovided separately from the game tool; the control unit furtherincludes image display means for controlling how the movable object isdisplayed on the screen and motion signal generation means for detectinga motion of the game tool and outputting a motion signal in accordancewith the detected motion; the automatic determination means isconstructed to automatically determine the settings for carrying on thegame at least including the moving direction of the movable object,which moves on the screen in accordance with the motion signal, for eachstage in which one motion of the game tool is made; the memory means isconstructed to store the settings for carrying on the game at the timethat the motion signal is outputted; and the determination means isconstructed to determine, at least based on the motion signal and thesettings for carrying on the game, whether the arrival point that themovable object has reached is in the target area or out of the targetarea.
 3. The game apparatus according to claim 2, wherein the game toolis operated by the game player in order to input a shot motion of a golfclub; the control unit further includes shot position determinationmeans for determining whether or not the shot motion should be made atthe same position; the determination means includes shot resultdetermination means for determining, based on the motion signal, thearrival point that a ball as the movable object has reached, and aresult of the shot; the automatic determination means has a function ofdetermining an optimal club in accordance with a shot direction toward ahole and a distance to the hole; the manual modification means has afunction of allowing the shot direction and the club determined by theautomatic determination means to be modified manually; the motion signalgeneration means has a function of outputting the motion signal inaccordance with the shot motion of the golf club inputted with the gametool; the memory means has a function of storing the shot direction andthe club at the time that the shot motion is made; and the automaticdetermination means further has a function of determining the shotdirection and the club that have been stored in the memory means at thetime of the previous play as those for the next play when the shotposition determination means determines that a next shot motion shouldbe made at the same position as that for the previous play.
 4. The gameapparatus according to claim 3, wherein the shot result determinationmeans has a function of determining whether an OB or water hazard iscaused when the ball has reached a point out of the target area; theautomatic determination means determines the shot direction and the clubfor a next play when the shot position determination means determinesthat a next shot motion should be made at the same position as that forthe previous play after the shot result determination means hasdetermined that an OB or water hazard is caused.
 5. The game apparatusaccording to claim 3, wherein the image display means has a function ofdisplaying on the screen the shot direction and the club determined bythe automatic determination means or the manual modification means, anda scene in which the ball is moving to the arrival point that has beendetermined by the shot result determination means.
 6. A game apparatusfor playing a game, which carries on the game by moving a movable objectdisplayed on a screen based on an input from an input device operated bya game player, the game apparatus comprising: determination means fordetermining, based on the input, whether an arrival point that themovable object has reached is in a target area or is out of the targetarea, automatic determination means for automatically determiningsettings for carrying on the game at least including a moving directionof the movable object before the input has been made, manualmodification means for allowing the settings for carrying on the gameautomatically determined by the automatic determination means to bemodified manually, and memory means for storing the settings forcarrying on the game, wherein the automatic determination meansdetermines the settings for carrying on the game for a previous playwhich have been stored in the memory means should be used as thesettings for carrying on the game for a next play when the determinationmeans determines that the arrival point determined for the previous playis out of the target area and that for the next play the movable objecthas to be moved from the same point as that for the previous play. 7.The game apparatus according to claim 6, wherein the input deviceincludes a game tool to be operated by the game player in a threedimensional space; a body of the game apparatus that includes therein atleast the manual modification means is disposed at the foot of the gameplayer; and the body of the game apparatus includes one or more switchesto be operated by the game player when the settings for carrying on thegame are modified manually.
 8. A shot result determination method for agolf game apparatus, which automatically determines an optimal clubaccording to a shot direction toward a hole and a distance to the hole,allows the automatically determined shot direction and the club to bemodified manually, and determines a shot result for each shot based on ashot motion inputted from an input device and the shot direction and theclub determined automatically or manually, the method comprising thesteps of: storing the shot direction and the club at the time that theprevious shot motion was made, and determining automatically the shotdirection and the club stored at the time of the previous play as a shotdirection and a club for a next play when a subsequent shot motionshould be made at the same position as that for the previous play.
 9. Aprogram for a golf game apparatus that determines a shot result, theprogram causing a computer to execute: a function of automaticallydetermining an optimal club according to a shot direction toward a holeand a distance to the hole; a function of allowing the automaticallydetermined shot direction and the club to be modified manually; and afunction of determining a shot result for each shot based on a shotmotion inputted from an input device and the shot direction and the clubdetermined automatically or manually, the program further causing thecomputer to execute: a function of storing the shot direction and theclub at the time that the previous shot motion was made, and a functionof determining automatically the shot direction and the club stored atthe time of the previous play as a shot direction and a club for a nextplay when a subsequent shot motion should be made at the same positionas that for the previous play.